The $3,500 Apprentice Incentive: How to Claim Your Share of a $35.8 Million Fund | Ep. 53

Buy the Numbers · Aug 20, 2026 · 38m

There's $35.8 million sitting in a federal fund built to pay manufacturers for hiring and training apprentices, and most shop owners have never heard of it. It pays $3,500 per apprentice. It's first come, first served. And when the money runs out, it's gone.

That's the American Manufacturing Apprenticeship Incentive Fund, or AMAIF, and it's what we dug into on this episode. Phil Hanke is back in the co-host seat and he brought Abby Mataya, who leads CLA's state and local business incentives team, to walk through exactly how it works.

Here's the part I want you to hear. This is not a tax…